Strength training for endurance athletes: what works
Heavy strength training and plyometrics once or twice a week improve economy and end-of-race power and reduce injuries, without adding weight.
Why
Several reviews show that adding strength work to endurance training improves performance: better running and cycling economy (using less energy at the same pace), more power in sprints and at the end of a race, and longer time to exhaustion. In runners, studies using maximal strength show economy improvements of around 2 to 8%.
Strength programmes are also the intervention with the biggest effect on preventing sports injuries: in a meta-analysis of randomised trials they cut injuries to less than a third.
With low reps and heavy loads, muscle gain is small: the aim is strength and tendon stiffness, not size.
What to do
Maximal strength: 2 sessions a week for 8 to 12 weeks in base and build; 3 to 4 sets of 4 to 8 reps, building up to loads of about 80–90% of your maximum, with 2–3 min rest. Multi-joint exercises: squat, Romanian deadlift, leg press, Bulgarian split squat (single leg), hip thrust and calf raises (runners).
Plyometrics for runners and triathletes: short jumps and bounds (e.g. 3–4 sets of 6–10 contacts), quick and reactive, once or twice a week, after mastering basic strength.
Execution: controlled lowering and lifting as fast as possible; stop short of failure. Beginners spend 2 to 4 weeks on technique with moderate loads (10–15 reps) before going heavy.
In race season, one session a week is enough to keep the gains. In the 7–10 days before the main race, strength gets lighter or stops.
Fitting it in
Do strength on easy days or after your endurance session, ideally 6 h or more apart; avoid it the day before a key session or a race.
Swimmers and rowers add pulling and shoulder work (rows, pull-downs, external rotators); cyclists prioritise legs and trunk.
How Zenvit uses this: Zenvit plans include strength sessions with exercises, sets, reps and load, more often in base and lighter near the race. If you report pain or fatigue in your check-in, that day's strength session is adjusted too.
Sources
- Rønnestad BR, Mujika I. Optimizing strength training for running and cycling endurance performance: a review. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2014;24(4):603–612.
- Blagrove RC, Howatson G, Hayes PR. Effects of strength training on the physiological determinants of middle- and long-distance running performance: a systematic review. Sports Medicine. 2018;48(5):1117–1149.
- Beattie K, Kenny IC, Lyons M, Carson BP. The effect of strength training on performance in endurance athletes. Sports Medicine. 2014;44(6):845–865.
- Berryman N, Mujika I, Arvisais D, et al. Strength training for middle- and long-distance performance: a meta-analysis. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance. 2018;13(1):57–63.
- Støren Ø, Helgerud J, Støa EM, Hoff J. Maximal strength training improves running economy in distance runners. Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise. 2008;40(6):1087–1092.
- Vikmoen O, Ellefsen S, Trøen Ø, et al. Strength training improves cycling performance, fractional utilization of VO2max and cycling economy in female cyclists. Scandinavian Journal of Medicine & Science in Sports. 2016;26(4):384–396.
- Lauersen JB, Bertelsen DM, Andersen LB. The effectiveness of exercise interventions to prevent sports injuries: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. British Journal of Sports Medicine. 2014;48(11):871–877.
General information for amateur athletes; not a substitute for medical advice or a coach.
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